Recommendation 7.37 – Increase tenancy and occupancy protections for people with disability

Australian Capital Territory

Response: Accept in principle
Status: Further work required

What has been achieved to date

Not yet commenced, no update.

ACT government response July 2024

ACT tenancy law currently prohibits all forms of ‘no grounds’ terminations. Tenancy terminations are only permitted on reasonable grounds specified in the Residential Tenancies Act 1997. ACT law also empowers the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal to consider a tenant or occupier’s disability when exercising its discretion to end a tenancy, although this is not explicitly required. 

For non-tenancy accommodation, the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 contains protections for people in occupancy arrangements, which typically include boarding houses (supported and unsupported) and other forms of accommodation with shared facilities. ACT law contains mandatory occupancy principles, including protections with respect to eviction, and the ACAT has jurisdiction to resolve disputes. 

The ACT Government will review occupancy laws with a view to adopting best practice protections for people with disability, in alignment with Recommendation 7.37 (b).

New South Wales

Response: Accept in principle
Status: In progress

What has been achieved to date

NSW passed legislation in October 2024 to end no grounds evictions and introduce other rental reforms. Reforms to end no grounds terminations for tenants in NSW commenced on 19 May 2025.

Work is underway to implement the recommendations from the statutory review of the Boarding Houses Act 2012. The incorporation of the specific elements of the recommendation is be considered as part of this process.

NSW government response July 2024

The NSW Government is committed to ending no grounds terminations and improving protections for occupants in residential tenancies and shared accommodation. 

A statutory review of the Boarding Houses Act 2012 has been completed.  The incorporation of the specific elements of the recommendation will be considered as part of the development/drafting of the of future legislation.

Northern Territory

Response: Accept in principle
Status: Further work required

What has been achieved to date

The Northern Territory Government will consider a review of relevant legislation in line with the recommendation.

NT government response July 2024

There is opportunity to review legislation that allow for housing providers to carve out various long term tenancy protections and make terminations easier.

This is the same for short term tenancies which is less unregulated. 

Queensland

Response: Subject to further consideration
Status: Subject to further consideration

What has been achieved to date

The Queensland Department of Housing and Public Works have commenced work on identifying the issues related to enhancing tenancy and occupancy protections for people with disability.

QLD government response

The Queensland Government remains committed to implementing the recommendations of the Disability Royal Commission. The Queensland Government has updated its responses to a range of Disability Royal Commission recommendations to reflect contemporary Queensland Government policy and commitments.

2025 response

The Queensland Government will consider this recommendation further, including whether legislative amendments are necessary to implement this recommendation. 

South Australia

Response: Subject to further consideration
Status: In progress

What has been achieved to date

The South Australian Housing Trust is on track to seek approval of its Public Housing Accessibility Reform Plan by June 2025. The Plan includes a series of actions to improve processes related to the allocation and modification of social housing for people with disability, aligned with recommendation 7.36. 

The reform plan is proposed to be progressively implemented by the Trust over the 2025/26 and 2026/27 financial years.

SA government response July 2024

The South Australian government is nearing the final stages of a review of the Residential Tenancies Act 1995 (RT Act). The review proposes legislative change that will provide increased protections for renters living in shared accommodation. 

The Residential Tenancies (Miscellaneous) Amendment Bill 2023 has now been passed and proposes changes to the RT Act, the Residential Parks Act 2007 and the Real Property Act 1886 to improve the rights of renters, modernise existing rental laws and ensure landlords can continue to manage properties effectively. 

Future changes include: 

• Requiring prescribed grounds to terminate or not renew a tenancy
• Doubling the notice to end a tenancy from 28 days to 60 days
• Limiting the frequency of rent increases
• Allowing minor alterations or modifications to premises
• More protections for renters living in rooming houses 

The RT Act does not include specific tenancy protections for NDIS participants who live in sub-let arrangements with a service provider, in an SRF, or in a boarding house. 

The South Australian government is currently reviewing options to further influence tenancy protection legislation through its review of the Supported Residential Facilities Act and a Review of Housing Services for People Living with Disability. 

Further consideration is required to understand how the additional changes in legislation proposed in this legislation will work in a South Australian specific context. 

Further consideration is also required regarding the possibility of setting rent at a maximum of 25 per cent of the Disability Pension plus participants’ Australian Government rental assistance payments.

Tasmania

Response: Subject to further consideration
Status: Subject to further consideration

What has been achieved to date

The Tasmanian Government remains committed to considering this recommendation further.

TAS government response July 2024

The Tasmanian Government needs to further consider what this recommendation means for Tasmania.

The Tasmanian Government has a Residential Tenancy Commissioner who can determine disputes related to a range of matters including disbursement of security deposits; disputes in relation to any residential tenancy database; and to act in the mediation and conciliation of any disputes between parties to residential agreements in relation to boarding premises.

The Tasmanian Government needs to undertake further consideration regarding the current legislative protections and how this recommendation could be implemented in Tasmania.

Victoria

Response: Accept in principle
Status: In progress

What has been achieved to date

The Disability and Social Services Regulation Amendment Act 2023 (Vic) (DSSRAA) made changes to the Disability Act 2006 (Vic) and the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (Vic) (RTA) to strengthen residential rights of people living with disability in Victoria including:

• Expanding the definition of ‘Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) resident’ to include NDIS participants with supported independent living funding, in addition to residents with funding from the Transport Accident Commission (TAC), Victorian WorkSafe Authority (WorkSafe), and the Disability Support for Older Australians program.
• Replacing the term ‘SDA enrolled dwelling’ with ‘SDA dwelling’, removing the current requirement that the premises must be enrolled with the National Disability Insurance Agency.
• Streamlining SDA provider notification requirements.
• Clarifying that the NDIS (SDA) Rules 2020, which provide for the maximum Reasonable Rent Contribution that SDA providers can receive, only apply to SDA residents living in SDA enrolled dwellings.
• Clarifying that SDA House Rules cannot take away any of the rights and duties included in Part 12A of the RTA or in the Commonwealth National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013. 

The DSSRAA became law on 23 May 2023 and changes to the RTA commenced on 1 July 2024.

A review of the 2021 RTA reforms has been superseded by the Housing Statement reforms introduced in the Consumer and Planning Legislation (Housing Statement Reforms) Act 2025 (the Act). The Act strengthens renters’ rights and protections. Additional rental reforms have been announced and will be introduced to Parliament in stages throughout 2025 and 2026.

VIC government response July 2024

We accept this recommendation in principle.

We changed our residential tenancy legislation in 2021. These reforms increased rights for renters.

We will review the rental reform package in 2025. When we do this, we will consider other things we need to do to make sure regulation and legislation aligns with the best models.

Western Australia

Response: Subject to further consideration
Status: Subject to further consideration

What has been achieved to date

Nil comment.

WA government response July 2024

The WA Government is giving further consideration to this recommendation. Further consideration will occur when a second round of reforms to the Residential Tenancies Act 1987 is proposed, and the Government can assess the then tenancy market. This includes consideration related to regulating boarding, lodging and room-by-room rentals.

What the Disability Royal Commission said in the final report

States and territories should review legislation governing the tenancy and occupancy rights of people with disability and adopt the best regulatory and legislative models currently in force, including:

a) in the case of tenancies –

• enacting legislation to replace landlords’ ‘no-grounds’ termination rights with ‘reasonable grounds’ as currently specified in Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania
• for both social housing and private housing tenancies, where a tribunal has discretion whether or not to order termination of the tenancy or that the tenant give up possession, empowering the tribunal to take the tenant’s or a co-occupier’s disability and the nature of that disability into account.

b) in the case of non-tenancy accommodation –

• adopting the provisions included in the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (Vic) Part 12A to protect residents of Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) under the National Disability Insurance Scheme
• introducing ‘occupancy principles’ similar to those under the Boarding Houses Act 2012 (NSW), to cover all non-SDA housing, such as assisted boarding houses in New South Wales and supported residential services in Victoria
• extending these occupancy principles to cover ‘general boarding houses’ in New South Wales and unsupported boarding and rooming houses in other jurisdictions where many people with disability live. This reform should include conferring jurisdiction on the appropriate tribunal to resolve disputes, particularly in relation to eviction.
• in hearing disputes about eviction, tribunals be required when determining whether to make an eviction order to consider the occupant’s disability, the nature of that disability, the possibility of retaliatory eviction, and the likelihood of finding suitable alternative accommodation.

More recommendations

View progress on other recommendations made by the Royal Commission.